Medicinal tablet container and dispenser



Fell 5, 1957 G. c. TORNBERG V2,780,349

MEDICINAI.. TABLET CONTAINER AND DISPENSER Filed Sept. 20, 1954 lNvENToR Y,

GORDON c ToRNBERG ATTORNEYS est United States Patent i MEDICINAL TABLET CONTAINER AND DISPENSER Gordon C. Tomberg, Cadillac, Mich.

Application September 20, 1954, Serial No. 456,945

1 Claim. (Cl. 20642) My invention appertains to a container and dispenser for medicinal tablets and more particularly to a device of the type that is adapted to be carried on the person of an individual.

Today, with the large portion of people taking vitamin pills of various sizes and shapes and with another large number of people suffering from various illnesses such as heart disease, diabetes, etc., requiring certain types of medicinal tablets and pills to be close at hand at all times it is most desirable that a portable device be available for conveniently carrying and dispensing such pills and tablets as may be required in a given case.

Attempts have been made in the past to solve such problems by providing portable pill containers which may be carried on the person of an individual. However, all prior devices have been impractical in that they do not provide adequately for the carrying of the many sizes and shapes of tablets now on the market and in that they are either too complicated and expensive to manufacture or are bulky and dilcult to carry and use.

Therefore, a primary object of my invention is to provide a container that can be used for conveniently carrying and dispensing tablets, pills and capsules of various sizes and shapes.

Another object of my invention is to provide my container with dispensing means which obviates the necessity of a person touching the tablets with his hands, which, of` course, can be harmful toV a certain extent, particularly when the hands are moist or unclean.

Another important object of my invention is to provide a containerof the character described, which will readily and easily lit in a suit pocket and which is circular in shape to t the contour of the pocket and hand.

A further object of my invention is to provide the circular cover of my device with peripheral notches to facilitate the indexing and movement of the cover by the thumb as the container is held in the outstretched hand.

A still further object of my invention is to` provide a slide for my cover which in one position completely closes my novel dispensing opening and may be quickly and easily moved to uncover the` dispensing opening to the desired `size pill or capsule. My novel slide is also provided with grooves or a roughened portion near the dispensing end thereof so that the direction of travel of the slide may be easily and quickly determined and the same operated by the thumb or finger.

Still another object of my invention is to provide a simple, practical and reliable construction that is economical to manufacture, easy to assemble and positive in its operation.

A more specific object of my invention is to provide a portable container for pills and/or capsules of different sizes and/Or shapes having a circular bottom half containing the different size pills, a top cover movable around the bottom half, a novel dispensing opening in said cover for dispensing one tablet or capsule of a given size while '2,780,349 Patented Feb. 5, 1957 ICC retaining the remaining tablets or capsules in the container and a slide to cover or uncover the dispensing opening, all of which are assembled and held together by press t and my novel center retaining pin to give a dustproof and waterproof container.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a portable container for medicinal tablets of an attractive appearance and of a comparatively small size and one which can be placed upon the market at areasonable cost and one which Will be durable and eliicient in use.

With the above and other objects in view, which will more readily appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the novel construction, combination, and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated and claimed.

A preferred and practical embodiment of my invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l is a top plan view of my novel tablet container and dispenser in its closed position with the arrangement for the dilferent size pills being shown in dotted lines;

Figure 2 is a top plan view similar to Figure l of the drawings but showing the slide in its open retracted position with the dispensing opening in alignment with one of the larger tablet holders;

Figure 3 is a longitudinal vertical sectional View through the container taken on the line 3 3 of Figure 2 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 4 is a transverse vertical sectional view through thelcontainer taken on the line 4 4 of Figure 3, looking fin the direction ofthe arrows and also represented by the line 4-4 of Figure 2 ofthe drawings;

Figure 5 is a horizontal sectional view through the device taken on the line 5--5 of Figure 3 and looking in the direction of the arrows; and

Figure 6 is a fragmentary top plan view with the slide in the position illustrated in Figure 2 of the drawings but with the cover being moved in the direction of the dotted arrows so thatthe dispensing opening is now in alignment with a smaller pill or tablet holder.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, wherein similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, the device C includes broadly, a bottom half 10 which receives the pills 1), a top half or cover 11 which includes the dispensing opening 12, a Islide 13 and the center retaining pin 14.

The container `C may be made from any desired material but in the preferred form, I utilize'an opaque plastic for`all parts with the exception of the slide i3 which is made of a transparent plastic. The bottom half 10 is provided with a number of relatively large recesses 15 arranged symmetrically about .its center axis adjacent the outer periphery thereof. I also provide an equal number of smaller recesses 16 arranged symmetrically about its center axis and adjacent thereto. While the bottom half 10 of my novel container can be thus provided with any Isize or shape of pill or capsule recess, in the form illustrated the recesses are circular in shape andas previously indicated, the larger recesses are spaced adjacent the outer periphery and the smaller recesses are Ispaced adjacent the center axis. The recesses 15 are so arranged that a circle may be drawn connecting all of their centers and the same applies to the smaller recesses 16 and it is also to be noted that a smaller recess is arranged intermediate each larger recess in such a manner that a line may be drawn which will be tangent to any two adjacent smaller recesses and their respective intermediate larger recess. The lower half 10 is also provided with a central aperture 17 which is countersunk slightly from both the bottom and the top to provide a projecting shoulder portion 18. The upper outer periphery of the lower half 10 is cut out to form a peripheral groove 19. The top cover portion is also molded to fonn. a` depending. side or peripheral ange of a size and configuration to be received in the peripheral groove 19 of the bottom half 10. The center portion of the cover 1'1 is alsoprovided with a central bore 21 slightly smaller in diameter than the inner diameter of the projecting shoulder' 18. The portion around the bore 21 is reinforced and projects downwardly terminating even with the depending peripheral ange 2t). The cover 11 is also provided with a series of peripheral indexing notches- 22. Located centrally in the cover 11 and opening out on both sides thereof is a relatively wide groove 23 and the same is undercut on each side for its entire length as indicated by the numeral 24. One end of the groove is provided with the dispensing'opening 12 and in the preferred form illus trated, the opening is made by cutting out circular portions in the groove 23 corresponding to a large recess and a smaller recess 16. These circular portions are cut out so that a line drawn through their centers will pass through the center axis of the container and the circular portions of the openings are' arranged tangent to each other with the smaller opening toward the center axis of the cover 11.

For ease of assembly and formation of the dispensing opening 12, the opening is actually cut away further along spaced parallel lines tangent to the smaller opening and parallel to the center line of the cover 11. Thus, there are actually two dispensing openings formed, a larger outer opening 25 and a smaller inner opening 26. Slidably received in the groove 23 is the cover slide 13. The cover slide 13 is provided with longitudinal projections 27 which are of a size and conguration to be received in the undercut portions 24 of the groove 23. The slide 13 is also of a size and configuration when fully received in the groove 23 to extend from one end of the cover 11 to the other. The slide 13 as previously stated, is formed from a transparent plastic and must fit a little tight or have a slight bow lengthwise so that it will remain in the position to which it may be moved. The upper surface of the slide 13 is provided with a series of transverse upstanding projections 29 forming a roughened portion to be used as a thumb grip, preferably adjacent the end 28 covering the dispensing opening 12. The bottom half 10 and the top cover portion 11 are held together by a press t with the center retaining pin 14.

It is to be noted that the center retaining pin 14 is circular in shape and is provided with a series of reduced portions 30 and 31 and that the projecting portion 18 of the bottom half 10 is similarly held between the reinforced portion 33 of the cover 11 and the portion 32 of the pin 14. The top surface of the pin 14 is provided with a small circular button 34 which is received within a longitudinal recess 35 cut in the undersurface 36 of the slide 13. One end of the elongated recess 35 is at the central axis of the slide 13 and the recess extends longitudinally of the slide and terminatesV adjacent the end 28 over the dispensing opening 12. The button 34 thus limits the travel of the slide within the groove 23 as shown by Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings.

It should be readily apparent from the above that with only slight accuracy in the manufacture of the device, it

will be dustproof and waterproof, particularly since the various parts are assembled by a press fit.

In the operation of my novel container and dispenser, pills or tablets P are placed in the diierent size recesses 15 and 16 respectively and if, for example, a larger pill is desired from one of the larger recesses 15, the dispenser is held in the out-stretched hand and the cover is moved or indexed by utilizing the thumb and the notches 22 until the larger portion 25 of the dispensing opening 12 is in alignment with one of the recesses 15. The slide 13 of the cover 11 may then be moved rearwardly to its position as shown in Figure 2 of the drawings and the pill P may be easily removed from the recess, after which the lslide may be returned to its position as indicated in Figure 1 of the drawings and the container returned to the pocket.

It, however, one of the smaller pills contained in one of the smaller recesses 16 is desired, the cover is moved in the direction of the dotted arrows (Figure 6) until the smaller portion 26 of the dispensing opening 12 is in alignment with one of the smaller recesses 16. The slide 13 may then be moved to its open position andthe pill removed from the smaller recess 16. It is to be noted that with my novel arrangement, only one pill of a given size may be dispensed at one time, the remaining pills being held in the container until the cover is properly indexed to remove the rest of the desiredV pills.

Changes in details may be made without departing from the spirit or the scope of this invention, but what l claim as new is:

A medicinal tablet container and dispenser comprising, a circular disc-shaped body having a bottom container portion andv an upper cover portion, said container portion including a series of spaced tablet recesses in its flat lsurface adjacent its outer periphery, a series of `spaced relatively smaller tablet recesses arranged about its central axis adjacent said first outer series of recesses and offset therefrom, said upper cover portion adapted to be rotated with respect to said bottom portion, said cover including a dispensing opening adapted to be registered with anyone of said rst series of recesses and a dispensing opening adapted to be registered with anyone of said second series of recesses, said dispensing openings having their centers in alignment with one another and with said central axis, said container portion having a central aperture therethrough with each end of said aperture being countersunk to provide an inner projecting shoulder, said cover having a central bore therethrough in alignment with said container aperture and having an inner diameter slightly less than the inner diameter of said projecting shoulder, and a center retaining pin received in said central aperture and central bore having a series of reduced portions in friction and press fit with said projecting shoulder and reduced central bore of said cover.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 173,543 Howe Feb. 15, 1876 2,194,009 Conner Mar. 19, 1940 2,236,224 Raschkind Mar. 25, 1941 

